The Edge of Philippine Call Centers

The BPO industry is one of the most profitable business ventures in the Philippines. While the rest of the world is experiencing the pinch of the recession, Philippine call centers continue to flourish. In fact, in a recent business survey, the call center industry in the country has shown a 22% to 30% increase in terms of growth and expansion rate.

Philippine call centers have learned to capitalize on flexibility to keep the industry alive. By implementing higher standards on service quality and marketing strategies to acquire new clients and keep existing clients, call centers have been getting by the economic downturn unscathed. The growth is coming from the flux of new client referrals and existing clients.

The industry also remains a good standing in the global business arena because of its strong professional workforce. Known in Asia as the one of the leading nations in terms of English proficiency, Filipinos are fit for the telemarketing profession. It is also a lot easier for Filipinos to adopt an American accent compared to other call center workforce in Asia. Aside from skills, Filipino agents also have commendable work ethics that clients appreciate.

Working with Philippine call centers gives investing companies the edge of global quality and this is irreplaceable. There is no substitute for excellent customer service so it is not a surprise that many companies in the US, Australia, and other parts of Europe outsource their telemarketing business functions from the Philippines. They get global quality for a competitive price, something that all businesses need at this time of the economic downturn.

Business experts are saying that the future is bright for the Philippine call center industry. Through the help of the government and private business sectors, the industry is expected to generate more revenues and bring more sophisticated call center solutions to companies around the world.

Of Call Center Outsourcing, Happiness, and Work

I have a friend working at a call center outsourcing center. He says that it is such a great place to work. I on the other hand am doing freelance right now and doing jobs where all I really need is a working personal computer and internet connection. I could do my job anywhere, that’s the perks of doing freelance work online.

Whatever one’s job is, it can get boring after some time. There is nothing that can stop this. It is just natural. People seldom love their work, that’s why it is called work. There is no need to be shy about it. But the more repetitive the work, the more hateful it can be. And also, the more restricted a job is, the more boring it can be. So if you want work that is enjoyable, then you better be sure that the job requires fieldwork.

Call center outsourcing companies require their agents to be stuck in a chair for a whole day while talking to either disinterested, irritated, or even angry people through the phone. This can of job can really test a person who seeks freedom. More so, if the person who works this way lacks a lot of other sources of happiness in his or her life, then it can be a problem.

But despite this, getting a job as an agent in a call center outsourcing company can still be quit rewarding. All that needs to be done is for one to find ways in order to keep oneself happy. This is why call center agents love to go out during the weekends or after work. There are also many benefits in getting a job in a call center. The pay is definitely competitive and the job, though repetitive, is relatively easy to do.

Do you Have what it take to be a Philippines Call Center Agent?

A lot of Filipinos have already considered working in a Philippines call center. And this is perfectly acceptable. There is definitely a lot of perks when one decides to work in a Philippines call center. For one thing, you can be entry level or you do not even need have finished college to work in a Philippine call center. All that one needs is the right stuff and good English speaking skills and you will become a definite candidate to be accepted in a call center. However, this is actually a big misconception. Not all call center jobs are easy. And not everyone can get in. There are many other details that one needs to keep into account.

First of all, just because one can speak fluent English, it does not mean that one is already a good Philippines call center candidate. One also needs to be able to process English speaking skills quite well. This means that one must be an excellent communicator who can quickly comprehend what the caller needs and issues are. One also needs to have a neutral English accent. Those who speak with a heavy accent and with bad pronunciation will have a difficult time getting into a call center. This is because it may get in the way of the communication process. Fortunate for us Filipinos, our English accent is a lot more neutral as compared to other countries. And this can also be developed and improved through training.

Secondly not all call center accounts are the same. This means that there are different skills that are required per project. One might have to do a lot of computations in some accounts. Computer literacy is a must as well as typing skills for any Philippines call center agent. Some accounts such as trouble shooting accounts also really on technical knowledge.

Moving from India to the Philippines: Asian Call Center

Our company was one of the first of those who first ventured into the call center industry. At first we set up one of the first call centers in India way back in 1997. Indian call centers were very busy. I did however never get used to the bad smell. It was everywhere, the body odor was overpowering. And the streets also smelled because they had a lot of cows and animals using the streets. Then our company noticed a change in the scene. Several large companies were closing down their Indian operations and were moving to the Philippines. Then all major companies started moving half or more than half of their operations to the Philippines for some reason.

This exodus was followed by our company. We then set up our own contact center operations in the newest fastest growing Asian call center location in the business. The Philippines was a very good choice. For one thing, the horrible body odor-like smell that permeated the whole of India including its cuisine was gone. In fact it’s quite the opposite. Filipinos it seems love to take baths. They take two baths a day in fact. And everyone was very courteous and friendly as opposed to India where you can’t walk in the streets without getting pissed of at some rude passerby giving you the look. It is a cultural thing. Filipinos are known internationally for their warmth and hospitality. I definitely prefer setting up shop there. Eventually we erected two buildings in a couple of the business parks in Manila.

The best part in having a contact center in the Philippines is that the agents were all so easy to train. They teach English there from kindergarten to college. No Filipino graduates without having an intimate knowledge of the English language. This is the edge of the country. Also, they have such a close cultural affinity with the U.S.